Masculine Designs

Today is Your Day

Happy midweek, everybody! We are halfway to the weekend already. And it’s definitely the downhill slide to the end of school. The kiddos are counting down the days — T minus 7 now.

And the countdown to school means the countdown to vacations for a lot of folks. And today’s card is a nod in that direction as we continue our card series that’s all about the guys. Even the guys spend time thinking about summer vacay! We’re putting the new Rolling Waves bundle center stage in today’s design.

We get started with a base of Lost Lagoon cardstock. A quarter panel is then embossed with the Soft Waves embossing folder and adhered to our card front to set the stage for our beach scene. Our beach scene is built on a base of Pool Party cardstock cut with the Everyday Arches die. The Rolling Waves stamps allow us to create the look of water as we stamp tone on tone on the panel. The same stamp also allows us to create the look of sand on a panel of Crumb Cake. A smaller detail stamp in the set gives us the darker grains of sand. The sand is cut from the half arch panel and adhered to the ocean backdrop. The foamy water rolling in is created with a die from the Rolling Waves set and then lightly brushed with Pool Party ink and adhered over the sand. The sentiment from the Saying Something ephemera set is adhered with dimensionals at the water’s edge. A bow of Lost Lagoon soft cording is adhered with a glue dot at the op edge of the sentiment panel. We finish things off with some starfish cut from Flirty Flamingo paper and adhered with dimensionals beside the sentiment and a scattering of shimmering dots.

Can you hear the sound of the crashing waves and picture yourself sitting beside the water? And isn’t this the perfect color palette for celebrating a guy in your life?

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Masculine Designs

Grill Master

Welcome back, everyone! This week, we’re creating masculine designs. And today we’re using the new BBQ Master stamp and die set and pairing it up with the Pleasing Patterns foil paper.

We get started with a base of Shy Shamrock cardstock and then use the striped pattern from the Pleasing Patterns paper pack as our background. I had a smaller piece that I used to cut the decorative circles using the Stylish Shapes dies. the circles are adhered in each corner of the card with dimensionals and will serve as the backdrop for each of our foodie vignettes. To build each of the vignettes, we select foods and tools from the BBQ Master stamps and dies and get to work cutting and stamping. Using color coordinated cardstock, we cut a variety of vegetables, shrimp, and sausage. The new Lunar Luster paper is the perfect silvery sheen for the bbq skewers. The oven mitts are Night of Navy and hold our teak grill tools. The sentiment from the BBQ Master stamp set is stamped in navy on white cardstock banner cut with the Stylish Shapes dies. Some shimmering dots finish things off with a pop of white across the card front.

Isn’t this one fun.. I love how the slits I. The meat and veggies let us thread them onto the skewers for a more realistic look to our little scenes! I hope you’ll drop back in tomorrow to see what’s up next in our masculine design series.

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Masculine Designs

Super Thankful

Welcome back and happy Monday, friends! It was a busy weekend around here with all of the kiddo’s activities — pretty fitting for Mother’s Day weekend, I suppose. He played his final band concert on Friday, had his 8th grade formal on Saturday, and we have the athletics banquet today.

Given the stormy Mother’s Day we had yesterday, I got some unexpected time to play in the craft room and whipped up this fun card to start off this week’s design theme — everything masculine. We’re pairing up the Nature Walk and Silly Old Bear papers with a few new dies and a new set of ephemera. Let’s get a closer look!

We get started with a nice neutral base of Crumb Cake cardstock. I chose three different patterns from the Nature Walk paper pack to build our backdrop. The grid pattern is cut using the new Scalloped Blooms die. Our focal image is a cute scene from the Silly Old Bear paper pack with Pooh getting a little help from Rabbit & his buddies to get out of a “tight spot.” The new Sweet Words & Labels dies coordinate perfectly with the scene sheets in this paper pack. Pooh and friends are adhered over the backdrop of the scalloped circle using dimensionals. The sentiment is from the new Saying Something ephemera pack and is adhered with dimensionals over a bow of white with gold ribbon. A few of the new shimmering dots give us a pop of color across our card front to draw the eye across the design.

This week’s masculine theme should be lots of fun. We’re going to use a few unexpected products to create a few of our designs. I hope you’ll drop in each day for inspiration!

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Masculine Designs

My Person

Happy new week, everybody! How was your weekend? We had grand plans to work in the yard because the forecast called for some unseasonably unwintery weather. But Texas weather had another idea and gave us temps in the 60s and gusty winds, which made it quite cool. So we switched gears and did some inside things instead.

This week, we’re on to a new design series that is all about the critters. And we’re getting started with a few of my favorite critters from the crafty stash — foxes! We’re putting the Autumn Toile paper front & center in this super simple layout that also pairs the Country Woods & Unbounded Love stamps.

We get started with a base of Cajun Craze cardstock. Our card front combines three different specialty papers — the Country Woods & Autumn Toile patterned papers and the Earthen Toned metallic specialty paper. The copper-hued foil and dark woodgrain provide a nice base for the focal panel of fox toile. The focal panel has been cut with the Textured Notes dies and is adhered toward the top-right of the panel with dimensionals. The sentiment from the Unbounded Love stamp set is stamped in Early Espresso on white cardstock before being cut with the Sentimental Framing dies. The sentiment is adhered in the bottom-right corner with dimensionals over a bow of Gray Granite ribbon. Copper & gold foil dots carry our eye across and over the key elements in our card design.

I hope you’ll pop by tomorrow to see what critter is up next!

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Masculine Designs

Sweet Dreams

Happy Saturday, everyone! My crazy week at the office ended with a crazy long day that seems to have followed me into the weekend. Sometimes that’s just the life of a public servant. While I have lots of things on the to-do list, I’m not feeling very motivated to get any of them done. So into the craft room we shall retreat. *grin*

This week, we’re looking at shortcuts for creating masculine designs. I don’t know about you, but sometimes it’s just plain difficult to create a masculine card. One way we can shortcut the process is using a more geometric card sketch. Another way is to choose a more masculine-inspired color scheme. And along those veins, today we’re combining the idea of layout and color scheme with a monochromatic, geometric look.

Today’s design gets started with a base of Cloud Cover cardstock. The background of our focal panel is a quarter sheet of Cloud Cover that has been machine embossed with the Forever Plaid embossing folder, and I chose to do so on the diagonal for that geometric visual interest. This embossed panel is adhered to the card front with dimensionals. Our sentiment panel begins with a strip of the blue Country Woods woodgrain patterned paper that is adhered on the diagonal across our card front. To keep with the monochromatic color palette, I chose the words sweet dreams from the Unforgettable Times ephemera pack. The sentiment is adhered to the woodgrain panel with a glue pen and then I covered the letters and star with Wink of Stella for the added drama of a little shimmer. We finish things off with some blue Rainbow Adhesive Dots on either side of the sentiment and a few Cloud Cover sequins in opposing corners.

I created this card for my kiddo for Valentine’s Day. He has a basketball tournament that day, so it will be fun to use the play on words of sweet dreams to share some chocolate and encouragement to reach for his dreams. A little later today we’re going to talk about how we can shortcut a masculine design with our stamps. I hope you’ll drop back in and check it out.

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Masculine Designs

Great Explorer

Happy Thursday, everyone! Whew — it’s been a rough week as we have all transitioned back to normal life after the Winter Storm Fern. Work and school and all of the things are back in full swing, and I guess I just wasn’t ready. Hopefully next week will go a little more smoothly.

But all that aside, I’m back with some more tips & tricks for those masculine cards. This week, we’re looking for those shortcuts to make cards for the fellas come together a little quicker. We started by using a sketch with geometric patterns. Today, we’re focusing on color palette as we take our cues from the new Nature Walk paper released by Stampin’ Up! This gorgeous paper combines hues of blue and brown and green to create perfect subtle patterns. We’re pairing it up with the newer Outdoor Adventure stamp & die set to make our adventure-themed card.

We get started with a base of Secret Sea cardstock and then add a sheet of the Nature Walk patterned paper as our backdrop. We cut an accent piece from a sheet of Timeless Plaid using the Textured Notes rectangle dies and adhered on the left side of our card. I stamped a stand of trees on white cardstock in a combination of Mossy Meadow, Old Olive, and Soft Sea Foam using the Outdoor Adventure stamp and then cut it out with one of the smaller Spotlight on Nature dies. It’s adhered over a bow of Secret Sea cardstock with dimensionals. Our wolf is stamped in Smoky Slate on Cloud Cover cardstock and then cut with the coordinating die from the Outdoor Adventure die set. It’s adhered at the bottom of our tree panel with several layers of dimensionals for some extra depth in the scene. I stamped the sentiment from the Outdoor Adventure set onto vellum with Versamark and then heat embossed with silver embossing powder. It’s cut out with the banner die from the Stylish Shapes set using the extension method to make it long enough to capture the full sentiment. The sentiment banner is adhered at the top of our focal panel using glue dots on either end to make it look like the banner is rippling in the wind. We finish things off with some Mossy Meadow and Secret Sea embellishments from the Moody Palette and Sparkle dot sets.

I hope you’ll drop in tomorrow to see a clean and simple design that comes together in minutes.

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Masculine Designs

Amazing Nature

Howdy, friends. Can you believe it’s Monday already? There was lots on the to-do list this weekend which meant that the weekend flew by, but it felt good to get most of what we had on the list all done. We bid adieu to the Christmas decorations (am I the only one who waits until February to take it down?) and put the house back together.

This week we’re beginning a new design series that’s all about the fellas. It can sometimes be hard to make cards that feel more masculine, but we’re going to explore our crafty stash together and find some shortcuts to masculine designs. And today’s shortcut begins with a sketch. I’ve found that a geometric feel to a card layout can lend itself to feeling more masculine. With a more neutral color palette and some earthy patterns in the Autumn Toile and Nature Walk papers, we have the perfect recipe for a card fit for a dear dude. (Did you catch my play on words there? *wink*)

We get started with a base of Crumb Cake cardstock. I used a sheet of the Mossy Meadow Nature Walk patterned paper to serve as the backdrop for the design. Our three repeating shapes are from the Nested Essentials die set and are cut from a sheet of the Autumn Toile patterned paper. I really love how you can still make out the original scene as you look down the three shapes and how the deer repeat in each panel in a perfect triangle.

The sentiment panel finishes our visual triangle and is punched from vanilla cardstock with the To the Point label punch. The sentiment from the Words of Beauty stamp set is stamped in Early Espresso. We cut some oak leaves and acorns from Cajun Craze and Early Espresso cardstocks and adhere them behind the sentiment panel, along with a twist of white & gold baker’s twine. The whole panel is then adhered to the card front with dimensionals. And we finish everything off with some gold drusy embellishments for the perfect pop of sparkle.

Today’s sketch is from the current Atlantic Hearts Sketch Challenge and also happens to be our current Luv 2 Stamp team challenge sketch. What do you think about using a sketch to inspire your masculine cards?

I hope you’ll drop by tomorrow to see what other tips we can use to make creating masculine cards a little less challenging!

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Masculine Designs

Masculine Birthday Wishes

This week, we’re designing around the theme of nature. And I can’t think of a better way to reflect nature than with a mountain scene! The beautiful Grove collections (In the Grove and Grassy Grove) by Stampin’ Up! are perfect for creating beautiful scenic panels like this one.

We get started with a base of Early Espresso cardstock. The background panel of the darker woodgrain sheet from the Country Woods paper pack is matted with a sheet of the Old Olive Season of Elegance paper. The sentiment from Simply Said is heat embossed in gold centered underneath the focal panel. The mountain scene is stamped on Very Vanilla cardstock using a combination of gray and green shades. The mountain stamp is from In the Grove, while the grasses are a combination of In the Grove and Grassy Grove stamps. I filled in the shading of the sky and grass with a combination of blending brushes but chose to simply use them as they sat in my storage bin for an even subtler shading effect. I used the birds from the all-too-fun Friendly Seagulls stamp set to add realism to the sky above the mountain range. The scenic panel is mounted on Basic Black cardstock and then affixed to the background panel. I wrapped some gold thread around the panel before affixing it to the card base. A few copper sequins from the neutrals set add a touch of sparkle to draw the eye to the sentiment.

This is one design that didn’t need a single dimensional. And if you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know how rarely that happens! *snicker* This is the perfect design for a quick masculine design and could be suitable for any number of occasions.

I hope you’ll pop in tomorrow to check out an ode to spring!

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Masculine Designs · Saying Hey

Hey, Good Lookin’

After a super hot week last week, we are now in the midst of rain from the remnants of Hurricane Beryl. As it stands right now, we’ve just gotten some rain and wind — not much more than we would expect from a spring storm. I hope that any of you who may have been in the path of the storm are safe and dry.

This week, we’re exploring designs using the Saying Hey stamp set by Stampin’ Up! This photopolymer stamp set coordinates with the Heartfelt Hexagon punch and contains sentiments that cover all of your major occasions. Today, we’re pairing up our stamp set with a number of different patterned papers from several designer series paper packs.

We get started on today’s card with a base of Basic Black cardstock. The background panel is the pieced sheet metal patterned paper sheet from the Take to the Sky paper pack. The center sentiment panel sits on a sheet of text with gold splatters from the Nature’s Sweetness paper pack that has been diecut using the Spotlight on Nature die set. The sentiment panel starts with a sheet of white cardstock where the sentiment from Saying Hey is heat embossed using the WOW! black embossing powder and then punched with the Heartfelt Hexagon punch. It’s framed with a black and gold hexagon. To accomplish the frame effect, each hexagon is cut in half on either the horizontal or vertical, depending on which direction it needed to be expanded in order to create the framed effect. So for example, the black hexagon is halved on the horizontal so that it can frame the top and bottom of the sentiment panel. The second portion of our sentiment is heat embossed in gold WOW! embossing powder on a banner of black cardstock that is diecut using the Happy Little Things banner die. The full center sentiment panel is matted with a sheet of the Pebble Path Tartan Foil specialty paper, which helps pull all of the color elements together. A few gold sequins and iridescent gems help tie all of the gold elements together.

Tomorrow we’re using a super fun stamping technique to create a focal element with the Saying Hey set. I hope you’ll pop in to check it out.

Products used in today’s card:
Basic Black, Basic White cardstock
Take to the Sky, Nature’s Sweetness, Tartan Foil, Gold foil DSP
Saying Hey stamps
Spotlight on Nature, Happy Little Things dies
Heartfelt Hexagon punch
WOW! embossing powder
Neutrals sequins, iridescent gems
Dimensionals
Adhesives

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Masculine Designs · Trucking Along

Just Beachy

Today, we’re wrapping up our week of touring some of the Stampin’ Up! sets that lend themselves to making great Father’s Day cards. And it seemed only fitting that we finished off with the “truck that broke the internet.” If you’ve followed along here for a little while, you’ve heard me mention this before. For those who are new, when the Trucking Along bundle was first released by Stampin’ Up!, it was so popular that it sold out in hours on release day and quickly sold out each of the next several times it came back in stock.

So today’s card features the Trucking Along bundle and a super cute design layout that I’ve borrowed from fellow demo over at Stamp It Up With Jaimie. For the beach lovers or the fellas who just love some summertime fun, this card design screams of summer relaxation.

We get started with a card base of Pool Party cardstock. A piece of Lemon Lolly is diecut using one of the largest circle dies in the Spotlight on Nature die set. I thought the radiating edges represented a big sun really well. Our sand is represented by a strip of the white woodgrain pattern paper from the Country Woods paper pack. I chose to make a one-layer focal image using the Trucking Along stamps and filled our truck with the beachy accoutrements. The truck is filled in with the coordinating filler stamps, while the items in the truck bed are colored with Stampin’ Blends. Everything is fussy cut and then adhered to the background panel with dimensionals. The sentiment from Trusty Tools is stamped on white cardstock and then cut with a combination of paper trimmer and snips and then adhered in the center over the “sand.” Everything is finished off with the swirl dots and shiny sequins embellishments.

This card comes together in no time flat and could easily be adapted for other occasions, like birthday, graduation, etc. And it’s perfect for any recipient, whether guy or gal. I love having designs like this in my inspiration folder for those times when I need a card I can put together quickly but delivers on the cute and fun!

I hope you’ve enjoyed all of the Father’s Day cards we’ve made this week and maybe got an idea or two for the fellas in your life. Tune in next week as we unwrap the Country Flowers bundle.

Products used in today’s card:
Pool Party, Lemon Lolly, Basic White cardstock
Country Woods DSP
Spotlight on Nature dies
Trucking Along, Trusty Tools stamps
Stampin’ Blends
Swirl dots, shiny sequins
Dimensionals
Adhesives